TikTok Music Lawsuits Fire Warning Shots to Brands, Influencers

The music industry’s legal crackdown on brand owners that use unlicensed songs in social media posts sends a warning for companies looking to capitalize on the explosive growth of TikTok Inc. and other short-form video sharing platforms.

The upstart energy drink maker Bang achieved enormous marketing success through its aggressive and flashy social media strategy that used popular influencers to advertise its drinks on TikTok and Instagram Reels.

But the company didn’t obtain a license to use the music in more than 100 of its videos, and it was hit with copyright lawsuits from all three of the major US ...